Residence hall tenants are returning to a faster Internet connection this semester.

Information Technology Services and Housing and Dining Services upgraded the DSL service in Lincoln and Douglas halls to high-speed Ethernet over the summer.

“This is an upgrade we have been eagerly anticipating for more than three years,” ResTech coordinator Jan Gerenstein said. “DSL service, when implemented over five years ago, was intended to be a temporary five-year solution.”

Stevenson, Grant, Lincoln and Douglas residence halls will have some coverage on all floors by the end of the year, Gerenstein said.

ITS also was able to provide an active connection for each resident of the rooms in Lincoln and Douglas. Students in these halls no longer share a jack or the bandwidth to the jack. There is no longer any need for a hub, power cord or extra Ethernet cables.

DSL will be phased out entirely next summer by a similar upgrade in Neptune Hall and University Apartments, 501 N. Annie Glidden Road.

Prepping the rooms for Ethernet service has heavy administrative costs. ResTech staff members have to go into more than 4,000 rooms at the start of summer to check for missing or damaged equipment among numerous other tasks to keep up with the maintenance of the rooms, Gerenstein said.

“After much discussion, we decided that we would rather put students’ money toward enhanced services such as the Ethernet upgrades and wireless on the residents’ floors,” Gerenstein said.

Until the project is complete, equipment will be provided in the rooms where residents share a jack. ResTech hopes to gradually eliminate the need for any equipment.

Equipment has been provided for the past five years because of the DSL service, Gerenstein said.

However, students in these residence halls now have to purchase their own Ethernet cord, which can cost from about $20 to $40.

“My roommate had to buy one,” said Vince Maloney, a junior psychology major. “I think it surprised a lot of people.”

Some students were not bothered by the extra money they had to spend.

“It wasn’t a big deal to me,” said freshman marketing major Angela Esposito. “It’s worth it as long my Internet is still working.”

For some residents, coming up with the money may not be as big of a problem as finding an Ethernet cord.

Best Buy, 2074 Sycamore Road, is not sold out of Ethernet cords, but the stock is low, said Isaac Ryland, a Best Buy employee.

It is not uncommon to sell many at this time of year, he said.